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(No Model.)

GL1". MoKAY; ACTUATOR FOR TRAMWAY SWITCHES.

No. 601,271. Patented Mar. 29,1898.

I Inventor, George MrKizy, v

fiflforne 1 a Em UNIT D ST TES PATENT OEEIcE.

GEORGE E. MoKAv, oE BOSTON, MASSAoHuSErrS, ASSIGNOR'OF ONE-HALF TO JAMESH. KENNEDY, OF SAME PLACE."

'SPEGIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 601,271, dated March29, 1898. Application filed July 3, 1897. Serial No- 643,346. (Ndmodel-ltion of improved means whereby a tramwayswitch can be actuated from thecar approaching the same; and my invention for this purpose consists,essentially, of adapting a finger to be impressed upon the track-railjust before the switch is reached by the car, so that it slides alongupon the same until it reaches a notch formed in the rail beside theswitchtongue. This'it enters, and the car continuing its motion saidfinger is forced in between the rail side and switch-tongue until thelatter is caused to move over to the opposite side of the switch-frog,and the switch is thrown as desired.

Referring to the drawings forming part of this specification, Figure 1is a side elevation,

partly sectional, of a portion of a street-car, showing myswitch-actuator applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a view of the switch andadjacent parts of the track-rail. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of aportion of a car and the applied switch-actuator. Fig. 4 is a sectionalview at 00 0c in Fig. 3 of the main part of the invention, but upon alarger scale; and Fig. 5 is a detail view of the presser-bar.

In the drawings, R indicates the platform and a part of the car-body towhich my invention is applied; 7', the dashboard. V is one of the wheelsS, the fender-bar of the truck frame, and T the track-rail.

To the front face of the fender-bar S is se-. cured the box 0 verticallyabove the trackrail. Within this box are pivoted loosely upon the pincthe two switch-actuators A, so arranged that when oscillated theirlower ends touch the track-rail. These actuators are oscillated throughthe action of the connectingrods g, arms 9 9?, rock-shaft g carryingsaid arms, and the bars ll, designed to be impressed by the foot of themotorman. There are two of these actuators A, as shown in Fig.

3, one so located as to strike in between the rail and switch-tongue atone side and the other upon the opposite sideof said tongue in order tothrow the switch in either direction; To economize space, one of theshafts g is made tubular and mounted upon the other shaft, as shown inFig. 3, and the arrangement of the two presser-bars H and the actuatorsA is such that pressure upon the left-hand rod shifts the switch'to theSide that will direct the car to the left-hand track, and vice versa.

The actuators A being depressed into con tact with the track-rail by thepressure of the motormans foot, I furnish the spring-arms E forreturning them to their normal position; but this is a part only of thefunction of said springs. Their other duty is to hold the ac t'uatorswith their lower ends I in the proper vertical planes over thetrack-rail, for since the actuators are loosely pivoted upon the pin ain order to permit of the requisite lateral play in throwing the switchit is very neces= sary that their working ends be held in their normalposition with a yielding pressure.- To limit the backward oscillation ofthe actuators, I supply the adjustable abutments D, as shown in Fig. 4,which need be nothing more than bolts 01' screws.

One great objection to automatic switchthrowers hasbeen that in case theswitch-frog has become more or less clogged with dirt or gravel it isimpossible to move the switchtongue entirely over no matter how muchpower is applied. To remedy this defect, I have devised an automatic orsemi-automatic frog-cleaner. This consists of the scraper B, pivotallyheld between the actuators and of course just above the track-groove. Bymeans of the connecting-rod Z, arms 1' Z rocking shaft i and rod L themotorman by grasping the eye or handle L and raising said rod can throwsaid scraper down into the track-groove and remove the accumulationstherefrom. In order to press this scraper firmly into that side of theswitch-groove to which the switchtongue is to be thrown, since at suchpoint the groove widens out slightly, I have devised the followingarrangement: This consists in mounting said scrapers trunnions b in lugsa, projecting from the actuators A. Hence whichever actuator isdepressed the scraper is swung over to the opposite side of therailgroove, as shown in Fig. 3. Said scraper is held in its normalposition by a spring-arm F, as shown in Fig. 4, and it is retained inits scraping position by means of the notch L of the rod L engaging theedge of the slot through which it passes. In using this scraper thepull-rod L is drawn upward until the former enters the rail-groove, andthe notch L engages the confining-slot of said rod and retains it inthis position. Then the motorman presses upon the presser-bar II untilthe actuator A meets the upper surface of the rail. This is done justbefore a switch is reached, and, as previously described, the downwardmovement of the actuator has impressed the scraper to the proper side ofthe groove in the switch-frog to remove whatever accumulations may betherein. So soon, however, as the actuator reaches and sinks into thenotcht the bar II moves similarly and brings its cam-face II down intocontact with the confining-slot H as indicated in Fig. 5, and pushes thesaid rod forward. This brings its finger II against the pull-bar L andpresses its notch L out of engagement with the supporting-slot edge. Thespring-arm F instantly throws the scraper B, thus released, out of thegroove of the switch-frog just in time to escape the switclntongue,which is now thrown over by the actuator.

Although I have shown but a single pair of actuators attached to thefender-bar above one track-rail, it will of course be understood that atthe opposite end of the said bar above the other rail there must be aduplication of the entire apparatus in order to throw the switch, whichmay be located in the other rail.

In using this switch-throwing apparatus the motorman rests his foot uponthe head of that presser-bar H which is at that side of the bar L towardwhich he designs the car to be turned. This pressure of the foot causesthe actuator A to descend to the track-rail and slide thereon with themotion of the car until the notch 25 is reached. This notch beingentered because the weight of the foot is still on the presser-rod II,the forward motion of the car and actuator causes the pointed extremityof the latter to wedge in between the switch-tongue and the notch sideand so press said tongue over to the opposite side of the switch-groove.The switch being thus thrown,the advancing wheel follows dutifully inthe path made open for it. Should the motorman think there was anyprobability of the switch being somewhat clogged with dirt, just beforehe thus impresses the actuator,he pulls upon the barL to throw thescraper B into the trackgroove, as previously described. Although I haveshown the said scraper as given its lateral pressure in thetrack-grooves by means of the actuators, it may be entirely independentof the same and operated through the agency of wholly separate devices.So, also, the actuators are entirely operative unaccompanied by thescraper; but the whole combined, as illustrated, gives the mostpractical results.

\Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is as follows, to wit:

1. The combination with the switch-frog and the switch-tongue thereinsaid switchfrog being formed with notches one at each side of theswitch-tongue and at an intermediate point of its length, of theactuator comprising the pivoted bar and means for swinging its lowerextremity down upon the trackrail along which it slides as the carprogresses until it sinks into one of said notches and throws theswitch, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination with the switch-frog and the switch-tongue therein,said switchfrog being formed with notches one at each side of theswitch-tongue and at an intermediate point of its length, of theswitch-actuator comprising the centrally-pivoted bar wedge shaped at itslower extremity and means connected to its upper extremity whereby themotorman in charge of the car can swing said lower extremity down uponthe face of the track-rail, whereby, as the car progresses, said lowerextremity slides along upon the track-rail until one of said notches isreached when it sinks therein and throws the switch, substantially asset forth.

3. The combination with the switch-actuators,of the scraper adapted tobe pressed into the groove of a track-rail, and automatic means fordisengaging the same from said groove when either of the actuatorsbegins to throw the switch, substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

4. The combination with the switch-actuators, of the scraper adapted tobe impressed into the track-rail groove, and means whereby theswitch-throwing motion of either actuator shall automatically give alateral pressure to the working end of said scraper and thereby removeall accumulations of dirt from the side of said groove toward which theswitch-tongue is being thrown, substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

5. The combination of the pivoted actuators, the scraper pivoted betweenand to the same but eccentric therewith, and means for oscillating thesame, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

6. In a track-scraper, the depressible and laterally-impressible blade,whereby when a rail-groove has been entered by said blade, either sidethereof as well as the bottom can be scraped clean of accumulated dirt,substantially as set forth.

7. The combination with the switch-tongue and notched switch-frog, ofthe loosely-pivoted actuator oscillatory in the plane of the track-rail,and the spring adapted to both raise said actuator and to retain it in alaterally-central normal plane, substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

8. The combination with the switch-actuators and thesoraper, of thepresser-bars for operating the same having the cam-faces, H and thepins, H, the bearing-slots, H for 7 said bars, the pull-rod L, foroperatingsaid scraper and having 'the notch, L the confining-slot forsaid bar, and a spring for normally depressing said rod, substantiallyas set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing in- Vention I have hereunto setmy hand and seal to this 29th day of June, in the year 1897.

GEORGE F. MCKAY. [L. s.]

Witnesses:

A. B. UPHAM,

CALLER.

